People keep asking why 50 Shades of Grey sells (especially as opposed to other works in that genre). I think–great title, great covers.

Cover image approval and cover copy approval is not a standard item on boilerplate publishing contracts. But there is no reason you can’t ask for it to be added. You’re only asking for “approval,” after all, an agreement–you’re not insisting that your vacation snapshot or your sister’s watercolor be the cover. You’re only saying, as the author, “I want to be able to agree that any cover going to the printer is an appropriate one for my work.” Even if you can’t always get cover approval clauses written into your contract, the more authors ask for that, the more often they’re going to appear. And these days, when increasingly marketing is being left to the author, it’s critical that authors have a product they can fully stand behind. You, RG, had that cover you were embarrassed to put up here (I can’t get the title without losing this screen and the comment, sorry, but the one about the woman who was NOT a prostitute. See? The awful image sticks in my mind beyond the title of the story!! That’s not right.).

xxx